London, United Kingdom
Architecture & Design, Ecological Art

What if an architectural artwork became a living organism based on the way it reacts to environmental conditions? This public pavilion aims to create an apparatus where the structure and tensile façade reacts to fluctuating climatic conditions while becoming a pedagogical tool, connecting humans with environmental poetics and climatic awareness. Yussef Agbo-Ola believes that architecture can have a profoundly deep impact on the ways in which we relate to and understand the ecological systems around us. By employing the design of a structure that transforms with the environmental conditions, Agbo-Ola aspires to create a poetic space that asks us to reevaluate the environments that we collectively exist in. The strategic program of the structure will have a series of talks, sound performances, and publications allowing its message and impact to develop over time.

Yussef Agbo-Ola’s multidisciplinary artistic practice focuses on natural energy systems and exploring the connections between an array of sensory environments—from the biological and anthropological, to the perceptual and microscopic—through interactive experiments. His aim is to use diverse research methods and design components to reinterpret local knowledge and its environmental importance cross-culturally. The outcomes manifest as architectural pavilions, photographic journalism, material alchemy, interactive performance, experimental sound design, and conceptual writing. He is the founder and creative director at Olaniyi Studio. Past projects include work with United Nations, ICA in London, Serpentine Gallery, TEDx EastEnd, Venice Architectural Biennials, Arts Catalyst, Lexus Automotive Innovation.